That's wild. I saw the title of the thread and thought it was a new technique for pruning. [g] An actual porcupine, wow! I have no ideas. How rare is it to see porcupines, I never hear about them. Are you in a rural area? I can't imagine it's going to destroy your tree. Maybe it's going to use the material to build a nest. I guess I would start by reading up on Porcupines to learn more about their behavior.

Apparently, porcupines eat bark and tender new growth of trees, especially in winter when other fodder is less available. I found multiple sites indicating that eastern hemlocks are a favored food source, especially young new growth, hemlock needles and even small branches. And because it is the newest growth they prefer, their weight as they venture into the tops of trees can cause breakage as well.

How to get rid of them is another question that I can't answer :-) I tend to prefer peaceful coexistence with any wildlife as much as possible, so I'd probably just let them be. Or if the damage seems to be too great, maybe using a a hose with a jet spray attachment would discourage them.

So you have a Prickly Hemlock pest, as opposed to the Woolly kind ☹️

I had a red squirrel do the same to my large black spruce, it was clipping off the ends of branches and eating the dormant pollen cone buds. Hopefully your porcupine doesn't start stripping the bark or it could be catastrophic.

Maybe you have a fisher around that will solve your problem.

You could rig some sort of baffle around the trunk to prevent his climbing the tree- like an oversized squirrel baffle?

in my neck of the woods.. i would hire trapper bob.. and be done with it.. money well spent if you want your problem solved ...

ken

BTW .. with a tree that size.. this vermin will have little or no impact on the trees long term health ... imo ...

this is somewhat common during the season squirrels build nests ... its like raining small branches ...

if you want to revel in nature.. then revel in it all.. not just the parts you approve of ...

ken

ps: one usual concern about removal.. is whether it is a she ... and when she may have procreated ....you want to solve this issue before you have a smattering of porkies in your area .... maybe even in your polebarn ...

Hiring a trapper to dispatch them seems overly harsh, IMO. And porcupines are not considered vermin! And are certainly far less of a threat to eastern hemlocks than are woolly adelgids.

Every native creature fulfils a role in the environment and we shouldn't go around killing any that we don't happen to care for and are just doing what comes naturally and to no great damage.

I hear if you pet them against the grain they will leave

And then you can take up accupuncture.

I’d ask your DNR if they have any suggestions.

tj

and that was your lecture for the week.. cant wait for the next one ...

ken

ps: if i had babes in my yard.. that means children ....porcupines would not be welcome... nor skunks if i had dogs ... life is not a disney movie ,,,[lol... boy the meaning of that has changed recently.. lol]

The former Sequoiadendron at Longwood Gardens had an incredibly elaborate, "steam punk" looking electric fence to protect the bark from being ripped off by squirrels. Where there's a will, there's a way.

Although technically not "vermin", I know what my solution would be to this problem.

My solution would be a concert. Wild animals tend to not like punk music and will leave the area when serenaded.

Trapping does not always mean death follows. Relocation might be possible, depending on your state's wildlife laws....

@cecily 7A, I like that idea!! And so much more entertaining than just hosing them down. Hope the neighbors understand........

Do porcupines taste good?

Kidding, kidding...

BB g*n, tho porcupines are pretty well armored. But for myself, I'd go along w/davidrt's inclinations.....

Thank you everyone for your entertaining and sensible responses.

The branches are still on the ground and I don’t see any sign of the porcupine eating any.

When I went out to take the photo two days ago, he was backlit so I couldn’t get a very good image of him. Or HER. The thing was about 8 feet over my head and frozen stiff and either caution or fear. I didn’t do anything unkind but I did inquire what he was doing there and I suggested that they were much better and walks a few hundred yards away, to the south west or even to the east on my own property. In fact Hemlock so one of my favorite trees and we have a long line of them and arborvitae between us and the neighbor. So I asked her what she thought she was doing their Coochie stop please stop chomping off my hemlock’s branches. (I offered this in a calm, respectful but firm tone — that is my customary tone with weaponized critters.)

Silence.

One of my neighbors offered that there are large bobcats and large coyotes around and that she thought it was a female porcupine that was pregnant and was afraid of the coyotes and bobcats. I’ve already been there or visiting that tree a couple of days she thought that it would probably just be gone especially since I had gone over to the tree and look up better and have around for about five minutes.

The next day Ms. porcupine was gone. However today I look out and I see a sizable branch broken off the Hemlock. Porcupine nowhere in sight.

We are surrounded by woods, protected land and wetlands so there’s plenty of alternative locations and hopefully she’s found someplace. My neighbor thinks this is the same critter that was breaking off branches of her Norway maple – not eating anything but just breaking the branches off and letting them fall to the ground. I’m not sure about the reasoning — if porcupines reason.

I’ve seen other porcupines around and I think they were adorable since I no longer have a dog. They seem very sweet and clean and I haven’t noticed any damage from them. But true I don’t really want a bunch of porcupettes.

I get along with most of the local critters, although I nearly rushed into the arms of a momma black bear one day as I planned to do my usual rush from the house to the garden, quickly rounding a corner. I was delays a few seconds by returning to the kitchen to fetch my hat. That’s when the large black bear was rounding the same corner of the house. Close call.

We don’t have (fingers crossed) wooly adelgids. I’ve looked for them. But my rhodies get whitefly every year (maybe too close together and not enough circulation?)

We get Woodchucks (i suppose from people dumping them here, even though it is illegal. They are PESTS, for sure, but are beautiful and clean. I have a clever vole who has taken up residence in a caged in blueberry pen. He is just gorgeous — clean, shiny fur.

I may find ways to dissuade Ms. Porcu if she keeps messing with my tree. The foliage will grow back (Hemlock!), but the partridge like to hang in it, so thinned tree will not give them much cover.

I got a smoker last year and if any one of you wants to trap and pluck the critter, I’m sure I can come up with a good basting sauce. Something tangy.

We have a few raccoons around too and I could do without them. We have opossums and we love watching them.

Maybe I should bundle the small hemlock branches for the porcupine, like a hobo sack?

And, yes, I think her weigh broke off a larger branch last night.

I did read up some on porcupines. But this one is just leaving the branches, not eating any or carting them off.

Thanks again, everyone. Some of your suggestions were quite entertaining. The electric fence wrap seems wildly ambitious. Hmmm. I started thee hemlocks from 10” tall volunteers, so I am attached to them. No cones on most though.

Google "Tracking Tips: Nip Twigs".

Larry Dale, THANK YOU! Exactly. She’s welcome to snack on milkweed, vio;ets, selfheal and all the cypress spurge she can eat. I can a;so offer her Japanese knotweed, bindweed, clover, sheep sorrel and poion ivy.

https://northernwoodlands.org/articles/article/tracking-tips-porcupine-nip-twigs

Now, did you already know this ”nip twigs” info or did you do a much better googling sortie than I managed to do?

I love watching wild animals. Last year I spotted my Eastern cottontails eating dandelion blooms. I had no idea. The rabbits and chipmunks must have incredible noses. If I put BOS (sunflower seed) down for the turkeys, they come by soon after. (The turkeys come up to our window and look in, then wait for us to come out with the mayo jar of seeds. Theyre almost ready to ring the doorbell.

Petalique: Thank you so much for the fun read this morning!

Porcupine teeth never stop growing, so chewing on trees or shrubs is essential.

Google searching is sometimes hit or miss.